Category: Lifestyle

Our Favorite Summer Farro Salad Recipe

Over the past few years, we’ve compiled a great list of recipes and trending food topics thanks to Peter Salerno and his love for not only creating kitchen designs, but creating in the kitchen as well!

One of our favorite recipes of the last 5 years is a simple-yet-exquisite summer salad that always leaves us full and refreshed.

Famous for his Tuscan-inspired dishes, Marco Canora’s experience has taken him from Gramercy Tavern in NYC to Cibreo in Florence, Italy, and back again. Canora now calls Hearth & Terroir Wine Bar in New York City home.

If you’ve never eaten farro, it’s all the rage lately in a variety of dishes. From salads to soups to meat dishes, farro is a versatile hulled wheat grain that is well-loved by savvy eaters as a great source of fiber and a “smart carbohydrate”.

This summer salad combines the hearty, nutty flavor of farro with the crunch of carrots, celery and onions and the freshness of cucumbers and tomatoes. We’re sure you’ll love it at your table as much as Peter Salerno and his family love it at theirs.

In a large saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil. Add the yellow onion, carrot and celery, cover and cook over moderately low heat until barely softened, about 5 minutes. Add the farro and stir to coat with oil. Add the water and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until the farro is barely tender, about 10 minutes; season with salt. Cover and simmer until the farro is al dente, about 10 minutes longer. Drain the farro and discard the onion, carrot and celery. Let cool completely.

In a large bowl, whisk the remaining 1/3 cup of olive oil with the vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Fold in the farro, red onion, cucumber, tomatoes and basil, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Quartz Countertops Are Trendy: Are They a Smart Choice For Your Kitchen?

Sitting in a recent meeting with Peter Salerno of Peter Salerno Inc. (our parent company), we were intrigued by a comment Peter made about one of this year’s hottest kitchen design trends: quartz kitchen countertops.

“Quartz [as a kitchen countertop material] is definitely in, and a lot of clients ask me whether quartz is a better option than granite,” Peter remarked.

The debate has begun to take over kitchen design, both among kitchen design experts and across the Internet. Should people be choosing quartz countertops for their kitchen design or kitchen remodeling project, or are granite countertops still the smart selection?

Here’s what you need to know about quartz countertops, and how they compare to granite surfaces for your kitchen.

1. Quartz countertops are not 100% quartz – but that’s not a bad thing.

Most quartz countertops are around 95% quartz, with the remaining portion of the countertop surface made of polymers, resins and bonding materials. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Granite counters are almost always a 100% stone surface, meaning that they must be sealed to avoid stains and food items from sinking into the natural pores of the granite.

Whereas some high-end granite countertops may state they require a granite-specific cleaner, quartz countertops are virtually all amenable to simple soap and water cleaning. Many experts recommend that granite countertops should be re-sealed once a year; by contrast, a quartz countertop requires no such maintenance.

2. Quartz is harder than granite.

Due to the porous nature of granite, it’s susceptible to staining (and spills are a bit more troubling). Quartz countertops are sealed with polymer resins, so the resulting surface is actually a harder material than granite. Quartz countertop owners don’t have to worry as much about chips, falling items, spills and stains as a result.

The other upside to quartz’s hardness is it serves as a natural detractor to cross-contamination.

3. Quartz countertops are heavier.

This isn’t an installation job that you’ll be doing yourself. Only homeowners with direct counter installation experience should be handling any countertop installation jobs, to be clear. But the weight of composite quartz countertops requires a bit more care than the average granite counter installation process.

Make sure you consult with a professional kitchen designer and installation expert to ensure that your space is equipped to handle the extra load of a quartz counter.

4. Are quartz countertops really cheaper than granite?

Again, sorry for the vague answer, but the truth is it depends on the individual job specifications. While the most inexpensive quartz counters are generally cheaper than granite, quartz’s price range is wider than that of granite.

As a result, the most expensive quartz countertops can exceed the price of high-end granite by a noticeable margin. Make sure you know exactly what you’re getting into with your countertop purchase, and don’t assume that quartz is always cheaper than granite – it’s not.

5. It’s all about your personal preference.

Granite vs. quartz is a debate that comes down to your personal taste. If you love the idea of a 100% natural surface in your home and don’t mind a little extra maintenance (and TLC), then granite countertops may be for you. If you want a little more durability, price flexibility (and color flexibility), then you should look into quartz.

Either way, a quality custom kitchen design team will point you in the proper direction and outline all the specifics on price, installation, maintenance and care.

So what’s your take on granite vs. quartz countertops? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!

Iced Tea Recipe For Ginger and Honey Sweet Tea

If you’re like us at Design Your Lifestyle, the perfect glass of iced tea is the final touch to a late summer afternoon. Unsweetened iced tea (or “sun tea”) is refreshing, but sometimes you just feel like a touch of sweet goodness to end your day.

But how do you avoid all the sugar that goes into traditional Southern sweet tea? What if you are serving your sweet tea to a mixed crowd, all of whom can’t take in sugar (due to diabetes and other health concerns)? Or what if you simply want an alternative, delicious way to prepare your sweet tea?

During the summer of 2018, our favorite sweet tea recipe comes courtesy of MyRecipes.com. It combines naturally delicious ingredients that blend together to create a fresh take on sweet tea with all the “zing” of an ocean breeze.

Check out this amazing recipe for Ginger and Honey Sweet Tea (courtesy of MyRecipes.com and Southern Living):

Peter Salerno’s Family Recipe for Sangria

The Perfect Homemade Family Summer Sangria Recipe

Peter Salerno isn’t just a master kitchen designer, he loves spending time in his own kitchen entertaining family, friends and guests. This love of cooking and creating recipes filters up and down the Salerno family for generations, and has produced some time-tested, delicious recipes.

When Peter Salerno married his wife Tracy, she brought with her a wealth of delicious recipes, cocktails and other “secret family recipes”. Tracy’s father, Mike Cavallo, was a master of many of these – but one of the family’s favorite creations from Mr. Cavallo was his famous sangria.

Our family Sangria recipe) photo courtesy Epicurious)

What makes the “Cavallo family sangria” recipe so delicious? It might be the perfect mix of ingredients, or the use of brandy and triple sec at the base. Or it may just be the special amount of love with which Mike made it.

In any event, it’s a sangria recipe that’s sure to please, and we’re sharing it with you. It’s the perfect summer sangria recipe for entertaining guests!

Mike Cavallo’s Perfect Summer Sangria Recipe

Ingredients

7Up/Sprite

Triple Sec

inexpensive brandy (something like christian bros)

a bottle of cheap red wine (barefoot works) either merlot or shiraz

ice

oranges (you can add apples and pears as well)

Preparation

Fill a *large* pitcher with whole slices of orange (leave the peels on), use a wooden spoon to press on the oranges to get a little bit of juice at the bottom.

Fill a 1/3 of the pitcher with ice

Pour even parts 7Up/Sprite and wine (pouring both at the same time is the easiest way) until 2/3 of the way filled

How to Afford Luxury Home Design: Part 2 [Personalization, Not Price]

In this series, Design Your Lifestyle shows you how luxury home design in 2018 can be far more affordable than you think. The series began with Part 1, where we stated that ‘luxury’ is a far more flexible term than you might think – especially when it comes to custom kitchen design and custom bath design.

The key to luxury home design is simple, and it’s the exact opposite of what you’re told to believe: you shouldn’t want to keep up with your neighbors. True luxury home design in today’s marketplace isn’t about trying to ‘one-up’ others; rather, it’s about focusing on yourself.

New kitchen design installation photos from Peter Salerno Inc.

Achieving true luxury in your kitchen design, bath design or whole home design is all about personalization – not price.

Personalized Luxury is the best kind. What good is a beautiful home design if it’s sterile? Imagine a spacious, glamorous home full of the hottest design trends, posh furniture, luxury appliances and state-of-the-art technology. That would be a great place to hang out for awhile, but would it be a great place to live?

A house can be virtually anything. But your HOME has to reflect you. A home provides comfort, security, sentimental touches and reflections of your family, friends and loved ones. And if it doesn’t compliment your own personality and sense of style, then is it truly “yours”?

One of the reasons we lean on our parent company, Peter Salerno Inc., for constant design advice is simple. Peter Salerno and his team spend an inordinate amount of time honing their crafts, attending conferences and design showcases, and partnering with the finest brands and sub-contractors in the world. But they spend even more time learning about their clients.

The application of personal touches and ‘personalized luxury’ even extends into Peter Salerno’s own home. Peter’s home kitchen is adorned with hand-painted floral arrangements on each of his custom cabinets – one to signify the birth month of each of his family members.

There are two ways to approach the concept of adding value to your home through hiring a world-class custom designer. One is, of course, financial – resale value is an important measurable to consider for the future. But in the here and now, the second concept of added home value is invaluable – and that’s the idea of personal value.

We’ll put it this way. Whatever your current design (or re-design, or renovation) budget may be, would you rather spend it on impersonal items that will only serve to add re-sale value? Or would you choose to invest some or all of that budget in making your home a place where you (and the world) can feel a true connection to who you are and what you love?

Quality home design firms today must take the time to learn about you as a client. Everyone wants beauty in his or her daily life, but the definition of beauty is unique to each individual. Ultimately, your custom kitchen designer, custom bath designer, or whole home designer must answer to one standard of beauty – yours.

The details make the design, and they also make it personal. Whether it’s reclaiming materials from your first home for use in your new home, or finding decor from your hometown, or simply utilizing your favorite colors, expert designers like Peter Salerno understand the difference between ‘a gorgeous house’ and ‘your perfect home’. And by utilizing that thought process, they can provide you with luxury home design that focuses on personalization, not price.

Want more information about this article, personalized luxury, or the designers mentioned? Fill out the contact form below or leave a comment!

How to Afford Luxury Home Design: Part 1

“Luxury” and “affordable” are 2 words that seem like polar opposites. This is especially the case when it comes to high-end home design, specifically custom kitchen design and custom bath design.

The world of luxury home design seems like a far-off fantasy to most people. (The author of this article is definitely guilty of perusing Pinterest for high-end home design photos and letting out a wistful sigh or two.) Whether your taste is gorgeous French ovens and ranges, state-of-the-art bath fixtures, custom tile work or unique accessories, luxury home design – and its price tag – appears to be a bit out of reach.

But luxury home design style can be attainable – and affordable.

World-renowned design firms like the award-winning Peter Salerno Inc. are committing to make design fantasies into realities for a more reasonable cost than ever before.

(Before we dive into the topic further, we should be clear – it takes a respected design firm with years of networking, experience and success to deliver this level of luxury at an achievable price. Without the proper connections and a finely-tuned approach, it’s hard to streamline the design and delivery process of such high-quality materials on a competitive budget.)

The finest custom kitchen and bath design companies in the world are trending towards “affordable luxury” – the idea that high-end design shouldn’t always be reserved for high-end budgets. For Peter Salerno Inc., that idea takes shape in the form of the revamped Transitions™ collection.

Peter Salerno Inc. is the most award-winning North American custom kitchen and bath design firm of the last 15 years, with awards from prestigious organizations like the NKBA, KBIS, Sub-Zero, Wolf, and Signature Kitchens & Baths. Their tagline, “It’s all about the extraordinary”, now applies to more budgets and households than ever before.

For those that appreciate quality, craftsmanship, and design but don’t require a Rolls Royce; Transitions is the only choice. We bring our award-winning design expertise to your space accompanied by quality cabinetry with a wide variety of door styles, finishes, and moldings.

At a price-point 20%-45% less than our Tesoro line, this is the perfect option for builders and homeowners looking to furnish a home with something extraordinary while staying in budget.

The thing we love about the concept of “affordable luxury” is that the term is flexible. As we’ve discussed in previous articles, today’s best design trends are all about personalization, and that includes the design budget. After all, the term “affordable” is relative to each client. For Peter Salerno Inc., “affordable luxury” is as simple (and refreshing) as always providing the highest quality work, craftsmanship, design, materials and delivery for the client’s budget.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be talking more about affordable luxury in custom home design, and the best ways for you and your professional design firm to create the luxurious home space of your dreams without breaking the bank. Stay tuned!

Amazon Prime Day July 16, 2018 | What Are This Year’s Deals?

Expect the unexpected when Amazon Prime Day returns on July 16, 2018… but expect AMAZING deals and savings at the same time!

For those of you who are unaware, Amazon Prime Day is a celebration for Amazon Prime members that’s comparable only to Black Friday in terms of deals, savings and special offers. The 2018 edition of Amazon Prime Day is starting at 3 PM ET July 16 and running all day July 17 – fair warning, it is open to Amazon Prime members ONLY!

(If you want to sign up for Amazon Prime to take advantage of Amazon Prime Day, do so here.)

Several major brands have already teased Prime Day 2018 deals, like Lulus, CarFAX, and Rugs USA. This is clearly only the tip of the Amazon Prime Day iceberg in 2018, but it’s a clear indicator that the bonanza is swinging for the fences this year.

So what can you anticipate on Amazon Prime Day, beginning July 16, 2018? What are some deals rumored to happen? How can you apply these deals and offers to your home, home design, kitchen and bath? And hey – how can you win a Lexus?

Check out some things we expect to see this year during Amazon Prime Day 2018.

Amazon Prime Day 2018: What to Watch For, Deals to Expect

The opportunities to simply WIN this year during Prime Day are exceptional. Amazon is, of course, pushing the Alexa brand harder than ever, and the list of companies and products that are equipped with Alexa is growing. From Honeywell to Hisense, Philips to Sonos, Alexa is the most pervasive, popular “smart” device in the world today.

As a celebration of Alexa’s success, Amazon Prime Day is an opportunity to win big and score major prizes. From a gorgeous 2019 Lexus ES with Alexa capabilities, to a full smart-home makeover, to a trip for 2 to Seattle, to $50,000 cash, there are so many ways for Amazon Prime members to get rewarded simply for taking part.

We can only point you in the right direction. The best way to truly get prepared for July 16th’s Amazon Prime Day is to brush up courtesy of Amazon itself. Click the link to head over the official Amazon Prime Day primer, and get tips straight from the source!